Despite concerted efforts by Tiruchi City Corporation and residents to keep the city clean, rampant poster culture and the practice of defacing public spaces continues to spoil the beautification efforts.
Residents have expressed concern over the defacement of public spaces and walls on either side of the highways and interior roads in the city with advertisements and posters. According to S. Rajesh, a resident of Cantonment, advertisers and political parties continue to deface walls and several residential areas with posters and wall writings.
Public walls are defaced in several prime locations in the city, including Ariyamangalam, Cantonment, Woraiyur, Thennur, and Tiruverumbur areas, say residents. Some of them have expressed concern that with the 2024 Lok Sabha elections round the corner, the poster menace might get worse.
The rampant poster culture goes against the Corporation’s initiative to beautify the city, such as decorating public walls with colourful paintings, writing awareness slogans on road safety, and painting graffiti on cultural and iconic tourist places in Tiruchi, he said.
The Corporation has notified dedicated advertisement boards for political parties and advertisers to put up their posters in all zones. Billboards have been installed at various places to facilitate advertisers to put up their posters. Since such facilities have limited space, political parties and advertisers continue to deface walls.
Official sources said the Corporation has been periodically conducting drives to remove illegal posters. Recently, the Corporation workers removed posters at K.K. Nagar and its surrounding areas. Steps are under way to control the poster menace. Advertisers have been sensitised to use designated advertisement spots and not to deface walls.
